HeartStrong = Intelligence of the Heart, Mind & Soul in Balance

HeartStrong has been a keyword for me in the last several years. It has been what I have been striving for, but I have never been able to put into words what this means for me.

Through reading The Secret Teachings of Plants: The Intelligence of the Heart in the Direct Perception of Nature by Harold Buhner, this concept has become so clear to me. However, the doing part, I'm still working on... I wish I had found this book years ago.

I don't think my life would have been as chaotic in some regards `;~) There was so much that I did not understand about myself and how my perception of the world worked. I don't think I would have lost so much of myself if I had understood that I was different for a good reason, not because I was fucked up `;~)

granted I may be fucked up in some ways, but not about this `;~)

So, here I am now, trying to find my way back to my path. I find it very interesting that my path is a very grounded path considering, I have very little Earth in my natal chart... The only Earth I have in my chart is Virgo Rising...

There are two camps, about this sort of thing - no element in a chart... Camp 1, says that you don't have issues with that element for this life engagement. Camp 2, says that you will have major issues with that element.

I think both of them are right in a way. I'm not good with money, I'm not what folks would call grounded, (stop laughing), and I'm full of whimsy `;~) Yet, at the same time, I have a strong connection to Earth and all her creatures. So strong in some cases, that it freaks me out and I run from it which creates an issue. So, yeaaahhhh....

Anyway, two of the major components of my path are dancing and herbs. I find that when I am dancing, I am at my most grounded and centered. Alot of my magick and psychism comes through dancing.

I cannot express to you how much joy I get from teaching dance. I hope that all my students come away feeling even just a smidge of the joy I do and find peace in themselves.

As for herbalism, there is nothing like better than to open the doors to my herb cabinet and just soak in all those wonderful scents. it is as if Earth, Herself, is welcoming me home!

I don't think there will ever come a day when I wont want to just indulge myself in plants and share with them my wonder and love.

This is why I do what I do `;~)


bb,

Social Media & the Interwebs

I used to be really up on the internet and all the happening sites and programming and I loved it.. I was a programmer and I ate it up. But then, I got burnt out and my life fell apart. I got a divorce, moved too many times to count and my computer died. I couldn't afford internet and didn't have the time or energy to keep up on stuff since I ddn't have to because I wasn't programming anymore.

Now, I'm in a better place, life is good and I'm not fighting the ups and downs. My life is no longer a roller coaster called The Tornado. After almost 5 years, my life has calmed down and it no longer feels like I'm in the eye of the storm `;~)

However, teh changes in technology are mind boggling!!! I feel like I'm swimming in circles and getting no where sometimes. It has been hard to get back into the flow of the internet. Twitter makes no sense to me... It took me a long time to get up to speed with FaceBook and now that has all changed again.

Twitter does seem to be interested and a good way to find out about all the crazy things that grab folks attention, but it is bewildering.

I love blogging and am enjoying it immensly. I've had a livejournal for years but hated how it was so insulated in it's own world. So I've enjoyed coming over to blogspot, but it is harder to find things and then I have to remember that everything isn't right there at my fingertips and I have to go check the blogs I"m following. There is no easy way to navigate the blogosphere :(

Do you have a website? Do you think there is a need for a website with the way blogs and the social media works today? Do you have seperate blogs and twitters for personal and business?

So, tell me what are some of the greatest new web gadgets, websites, and technology that you love? What do you absolutely love on the web today?

bb,

Products now available on Etsy

Finally getting my products up on Etsy! YAY! Please come and visit my shop, you never know, you may find the very thing you need `;~)

I currently have my Bless My Home Incense and my new product Love Be Mine . By the end of the week, I plan to have Harm Me Not Incense, a home protection incense, and Brigid's Mantle Incense , a great incense for when the weight of the world is on your shoulders, you need to rev up your creative juices, working healing rituals for someone or Earth (She really needs to feel our love right now!!!), and more!

Some come by for a spell and visit The Shining Isle at http://begraven.etsy.com !

bb,

Made and burned so much incense, I'm surprised my smoke alarm didn't go off! LOL

It's a virtual fantasy land here with rabbits, stars, birds, and feathers `;~)

I want to thank everyone who liked my Bead Soup Necklace, I think I will call it "Bambi." I agree with Amber Dawn Inventive Soul that is definitely shouts out BAMBI `;~) I had so much fun making this necklace! Shannon of For My Sweet Daughter made the beautiful copper etched rabbit pendant and the birdsnest too! Please go and take a loot look at her beautiful work `;~)

I hope to get back into the studio tonight and make some earrings to go with this necklace. So we will see where that takes me `;~)





Right now, I'm so excited cause my huge herb haul came in on Monday and I have been dying to get into them!!! I spent Tuesday night reading up on some ideas and I can't wait to try them out! I also have a couple custom orders on my plate at the moment that I am really excited about `;~)

I'm also going to try my hand at making incense cones! I have some makko powder that I'm just itching to mix into some of my standard recipes and see how they compare. I might start offering incense loose and cone if it works like I'm hoping `;~)





I finally got my peacock feather tattoo that I have been wanting for the last year. I'm so very happy with it!


I hope each and every one of ya'll have a blessedly beautiful weekend `;~)
bb,

Bead Table Wednesday And Sneak Peak!

I really enjoy getting back into beading and this Bead Soup Blog Party have really thrown my creativity into high gear along with the Bead Table Wednesday posts.


So here is my sneak peak:



My swap partner, Shannon @ For My Sweet Daughter bead soup really has stretched me outside my usual zone. But I have been having so much fun playing with these beads. Now, I just have to finish in time... hahahaha!

As you can see, this necklace is very much about Spring `;~)


bb,

My Life Feels Like a Trick Question

Seriously, I try to live simply and mind my P's and Q's. Stop laughing, seriously people... I really do.. where does that saying come from anyway???

I line my ducks in a row just to know them over and see how they fall. I like things neat and tidy so I can see how the chaos flows .

I really like it when my plans fall together just right and everything works. And it drives me crazy when the plan in my head does not match up to reality. I don't plan things out very often. I'm so seriously not a planner! I buy planners and calendars all the time so I can see how neat and pretty all the boxes and check marks line up. However, I never end up using them for more than a month cause I don't like having to cross things out or leave messy blotches on it.

My plans constantly change, almost as soon as I would write them in a planner. Plus, I don't like to be tied down, I like to go wherever the wind blows. I am a gypsy at heart and cannot stand standing still `;~)

So, I devised a plan. A good plan. An Excellent Plan. I even talked to a trusted friend who doesn't bullshit me and reviewed my plan... Made sure I wasn't blowing smoke out the wrong hole... and we really wouldn't want that. I don't think we need a discussion on smoke holes...

The plan? Get my herb and jewelry business going... There are several things I need in order to do this:

1)Herbs duh... I have herbs, but not in quantities that will provide a decent stock of products. Herbs aren't especially expensive in quantities for home or personal use, but it starts to add up when buying for product stock. So, no problem, I've got tax refund money to use...

Products are ordered and have been awaiting pickup by UPS since Saturday!!! just picked up by UPS!! YAY!!!

2)A working computer that can connect to the internet...

My trusted no-bullshit friend, kindly offered me a used MAC G4. It's not fancy-shmancy, but I just need it to be reliable, handle making labels, fixing photos, getting products uploaded to etsy/ebay, etc... It is perfect for what I need. And of course, it is a MAC, so no problem with getting things set up....

3)A Printer/Scanner... Said friend made recommendations and the reasoning was sound... His recommendations jived with exactly what I wanted...

So, Sunday, I head up the road to pick up the MAC and do a little shopping after my coven workshop... Due to a brainfart miscalculation of location, I end up missing my coven workshop :( So I head to the next stop and pick up the computer. Everything is ready to go, so easy peasy, I'm set and take off.

On the way back home, I realize that it's President's Day Weekend which means LOTS of sales. So, I decide to stop in Best Buy and check out the recommended printers. There is a nice sale that puts the printer I wanted way below what I expected to pay, so I decide to pick it up, along with extra print cartridges and paper supplies...

And happy me goes on my way excited to think I have everything I need to get started...

On the long drive the rest of the way home, I'm planning and thinking of where I'm going to set up the computer and how I'm going to do this and that and do a couple test runs with teh printer/scanner...

So finally, I get home and I'm totally exhausted. Once again, I didn't get any sleep the night before and I've been running non-stop all dang day and it is like 5pm... And now, I have to make about 5 trips up and down those damn 19 steps! I'm so glad I decided not to put the PC in the studio upstairs...

Finally get everything inside and start get everything unpacked...

I CAN'T CONNECT TO THE INTERNET

I try a few things, but nothing is working. So I have to wait until the next day to talk to my wi-fi share person for deets.

Okay, no problem, I can still get the printer set up and test out some stuff there...

I DON'T HAVE THE PASSWORD

Friend is out of town, so I try to think like him, which is literally impossible... But I do come up with a few ideas of what the password would be based on the 'password hint' but no such luck :( Sent email, friend will get back to me on it eventually...

Okay, I totally give up for the night... Watch some TV and veg out for a couple hours.

Thank the Gods, I got some decent sleep last night!!!!


bb,

Bead Table Wednesday

I was up all night into the early morning beading away. I have to say that the beading and making jewelry are one of the few things that bring me absolute piece where my mind is given over to creating and thoughts, fears, and emotions do not overwhelm me.

After last night I realized that I SERIOUSLY need a better beading table/work surface :( I lost mine in a previous move :( Hopefully, this weekend I'll be able to hit up the flea markets and junk shops around and find something that fits my needs.

I also realized that I cannot get my studio organized or find half of my stuff because I can't unpack until I have an actual work station set up. AND I need to get rid of that damn weight machine taking up a quarter of my studio space. *grumble*

I have the perfect chain to go with the project I'm working on but I CANNOT find it anywhere and it about drove me crazy last night.

But once I put aside all these frustrations, I had an excellent time and my creativity abounded!

BB,

Reflections on Love

I have to say that I am very happy to be single rather than in the wrong relationship. I have had many relationships and each one has brought me to a greater understanding of who I am and what I need in a partner. So I give thanks for each relationship and let go of the pain and hurt within me that I have unnecessarily held onto.

I do not know if I'll ever have another "Great Love." For years, I dreamed and fantasized about that "Great Love" that transcends all that I could imagine. Being so complete within that "Great Love" that nothing could shake me.

Instead, this sweet journey of love has lead me to the greatest love I could ever find. The "Great Love" with myself- for myself and others.

Sure, I will occassionaly get shaken up, but my roots are firmly planted.
My Heart is as clear and open as the Sky

Namaste,
Shelly